collins



A. F. c0LL`N s. BANK CHECK.

APPLlCATlON HLED SEPT. 12, 1919.

1,407,256, Patented Feb. 21, 1922.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

No :loco

Co Z l i 11.3 Prite ced .imeem. COLLINS, or MINNnAPoLis; mimnsouAgLlojet&

To ,all 'whom/it mayjconcem:

Be it' known thatI, ALBERT F. CoLLINs;

a citizen ofthe United States, residing at Minneapolis, in the county ofHennepn and StateofMinnesota have invented new and "useful' lmprovementsin Bank Checks, of

which the' following is a specification'.

My` invention relates to improvements in bank checks; money orders;draft s; notes and like instruments." The" term check ap pearing hereinwill therefore, beassumed to include the above'andsimilar instruments.

Heretofore, checks havebeen- 'marked With letters gures or characters bycheck protectors to-prevent the alteration thereof- "and checks havebeen usedbearing tables of figures, 'certain of 1 said figures being;punched out to prevent alterations. rThese checks have been more or;less successful,

but 'the checks which are marked or im p rint ed with Words; figures orcharacters "requre so much tlme inpreparation and 'handling:

as' to greatly limit their use This disadvantage is also presentinchecks froni which figures are punched to indicate the' amountsthereof and such checkshave often been raised by skillful'hands. r 4

It is theobj ect 'of my present invention to providea check adapted tobe quickly and easily marked to indicate the amount to be paid and so'-constructed as' raising thereof."

A' further object is to provide 'a check of this 'kind', WllCh'IiOj onlysaves the time of persons marking such'checks for protection,

tens of dollars'zand so on 'indecimally pro gresive order, said columnsof figures being located betweentinted' zones, and a series ofperforations in'each column of figures, each -seriesincluding oblique iperforations which 7 cancel the'` figures representing amounts higher'than that for which-the check is drawn," a'horiz ontal" perforationcutting otthe' figurerepresenting the :next

lower amount and an indicating per-'fora tion in the adjacent tinted-zone which together v With said horizontal perforation readily' directsthe, vsion totthe figure rep;

- A further object isto provide a check havto rprevent' thespecifiajtion of Le cf nteit. gp t ted b; 21 ApplicationfiledSptember12ii191Q.*SeraTNQSBBGE' i said 'columns of fignres'and saidwritten in;-

dicationmay be' quickly made bythe peri Sons Signing, paying orotherwisehandling" the check.

r s A 'furtherbbject i toprovide a check-bf this kind having a spacein'gwhich* the amount' of'th'e check is' indicatedfor the convenience'ofthe per-'son 'perforating the same, said' space being 'located near'theeen-J' ter of the 'check and""at a point "observable When one' ene'thereof is' inserted in a" perforatng'devce 7 i In: the accompany1ngdrajwngs Fig: 1 'is a View 'representing my' imiproved check in-the"blan'k; Figl '2 is a' 'perspective View* of i my check` inposition` 'within a i perforating 5 machine preparatory tobeingpunched'and clearly shows the' utility' 'of the' central writ' ten indcationofthe' amount' for ;which the i check's drawn; Fig; 3 is a' VieW'ofthe"com pleted check; Fig. 4 isa fragmentary 'pen spective view'of adevice-'for perforating views-'in detail'of the diestherein,

'Referring to the' accompanying drawings, I have used the referencenurheral 10 to designate the body of the check; In' the upper`rightfhand corneriof the checkare the check and Figs. 5 and 6 areperspective usual'linesor spaces 11 and 12 in which the number oftheheckand the' date thereof may' be placed. Near'thej bottom lof the checkis a lon'gitud inal tinted or' otherwise markedz0ne^13fforthe payes nameand i inline therewith and at the 'right extremity of the body 10' is'atin'ted zone 14 to receive written figures designating the amount ofthecheck Beneath said zones 13 and 14 is a similar zone l for "thedr'avvers signature. Beneaththe numbe'r'and date lines 11 and 12 "andabove the zones" 13 'and 14 is a table of' figures comprising anumberjof coluinns of figures, each increasing progressively from bottomto top, said columns representing from right to' left, deciinallyincreasing amountsf Thus, the columnon' the right indicates dollars on'eto nne in- 'clusive, 'the next column represents tens' of dollars, tento ninety incl usive; and so on;

.the 'highestamountshown being nine thoi sand. number of columnsoffigures 'de-` sired may, of course, be employed. A'tint Lem-,256

ed or otherwise protected zone 16 extends above said column of figuresand on each side of each column. Peculiar perforations are formed in thecheck to cancel the figures in said columns indicating amounts higherthan those of the check, also to cancel the* figures indicating the nextlower amounts and further to cut guides in the tinted zones adjacentsaid columns of figures to direct the sight t the undisturbed figuresrepresenting the amount of the check. I employ a similar series ofperforations for each column of figures,including several paralleloblique perforations 17 arranged between upper and lower triangularperforations 18 (F ig. 3). In addition to these angular perforations isa horizontal perfora.

- between the lower triangular perforation 18 and -the horizontalpe'rforation 19.' The guide perforation 20, opposite said space, andsaid horizontal perforation .20, which resembles an underscore, readilydraws attention to the payable amount appearing in said space. It willbe noted that this combination of angular and horizontal perforations,together with the guide perforation in the tinted zone minimizes to agreat degree the possibility of' altering the check.

In raising the instrument, the horizontal perforation would fall inposition formerly occupied by an angular perforation and the guideperforation 20- would necessarily occupy a new position, thusnecessitating the plugging of the original perforation in the tintedzone. The task of plugging the series of perforations and recutting thesame in the patched sections would be difficult and quite impossiblewithout detection.

I prefer to perforate the blank check by means of a punching devicewhich simultaneously perforates all of the co-lumns of figures in thecheck. The particular mechanism of this device is pointed out in acompanion application for patent to be filed herewith. Parts of saiddevice are .however, illustrated herein to better explain the functionsof certain features of my improved check. F ig. 2 of the drawings is aperspective view of my improved punching device.

The base 21 and' cover 22 contain the punchi ing mechanism. A guide 23in the cover 22 receives my check, which is provided with a tinted zone10 wherein are placed the i written figures indicating the amountthereof. This zone, being placed near the center of the check, isplainly visible to the operator of'the device, who shifts the levers 24to desired positions with respect to the indicator 25, preparatory todepressing the 'handle 26. Referring to F ig. 4, the guide 23 passesthrough a series of die carriages 27, one of which is shown. Thesecarriages are connected with, the levers 24, each carriage supportingthereon a'fixed die 28 and 'a vertically slidable die 29, the latterbeing connected by means of apintle 30 with an equalizing bar 31. A rod32 oscillated by the hand lever 26 is connected through links 33 and 34:with a push rod 35, which slidably bears upon the equalizing bars 31. eA check placed within the guide 23, rests between the dies anddepression of the handle 26 causes said check to be perforated, inaccordance with theadjustment of the levers 24. The die members 29 haveprojections 36 and 37 for cutting the perforations 17 and 18 'in mycheck and projections 38 and 39 for cutting the perforations 19 and 20therein. i e

The following wordsof instruction appear upon the face of the check: Pano more in 'dollars than amount indicated by arrow head. These checks,of course, may be drawn for amounts including cents, but

the table of figures employed has reference to dollars only.

In summarizing the advantages of my check, it will be remembered thatthe amount of the check written' near the center thereof facilitates inperforating the check; the

umns of figures efi'ectually obliterate all higher amounts than those tobe paid;lthe arrow head perforations 20 in the, tinted zones point tothe amounts to be paid; the horizontal perforations 19 serve further toprevent alteration and together with the arrow head perforations quicklydraw the oblique perforations 17 and 18 in the 'col vision to the properamounts payable; the i location of the table of figures above thewritten indication of the amount of the check and the signature linerenders `rapid comparison between the .perforate d' mark-` ings and saidwritten indication; the' perforations in the right end of the checkinsures the placing of indorsements in proper position; and the 'absenceof imprinted lines upon the checks minimizes the folding and crumplingthereof in handling.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire' toprotect by Letters Patent is: j e

1. A check having thereona plurality of spaced columns' of figures, 'thefigures in each column increasng progressively from the bottom to thetop thereof, tinted zones adjacent to said colunns of figures and seriesof perforations in the check, one series being 'cut in each column offigures and in cluding'a vertical group ofoblique perforations, alateral oblong perforation spaced beneath said group and an indcatingperforation in the adjacent tinted zone opposite the space above saidoblong perforatio'n.

2. The combination of a check having thereon a plurality of spaced columns of figures, the figures in each column increasing progressivelyfrom the bottom to the top thereof, tinted zones near said columns offigures, cancelling perforations in said columns of figures cutting outamounts other than those tobe paid and indicating perforations in saidtinted` zones designating the amounts payable.

i 3. A check of the class described having aspace for signature, a spacefor the Written indication of the amount of the check,

columns of figures, tinted zones adjacent thereto, said figures andzones being located above said spaces, cancelling perforatons cuttingsaid columns of figures 'above and below the amounts to be paid andofisetindicating perforations cutting the tinted zones. i i i 4. A checkhearing a plurality of spaced columns of figures and having a tintedprotective zone on one side of each column,

cancelling perforations cutting said columns, of figures and of'fsetindicating perforatons cutting said zones, said perforations indicatingthe amount of the check and preventing i alterations thereof.

Signed at Minneapolis, in the county of Hennepin and State of Minnesota,this th day of September, 1919. 5 V r I g ALBERT F. COLLINS.

